


narcissus poeticus

by alolandugtrios



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Beaches, F/M, Flower Crowns, Flowers, Fluff, Minor KH3 Spoilers, Teen Romance, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-23
Updated: 2019-04-23
Packaged: 2020-01-24 15:57:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,226
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18574765
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alolandugtrios/pseuds/alolandugtrios
Summary: "the daffodil symbolizes rebirth and new beginnings. though daffodils do grow in shades of white and orange, they are best known for brightening up the garden with their cheery yellow hues."





	narcissus poeticus

Naminé sits in the sand, a small collection of flowers gathered at her side. Petals of only a few shades are gathered in the assortment — ivories, a few dusts of pinks, but a majority of them are the brightest golden yellow. All of them were plucked with their stems, just long enough to be able to weave into others.

On the opposite side of the flower pile is Ventus, slightly hunched over as he focuses on the flowers in his hands. Delicately as he can, the stems of a couple of blooms are being twisted and gingerly tied; he’s careful to not touch and destroy the petals in his hands, but inevitably, the efforts show in darkened spots on the stems.

“You’re pretty good at this for your first time,” Naminé comments, looking over from her own work. She’s further along with almost a complete circle of flowers, however a bit less meticulous than Ven's. The stems are tied more loosely — more likely to come apart, but less likely to appear bruised. “I think yours might actually last longer than mine.”

“Really?” he questions, looking over to hers and back to his. After a moment spent deciding, he settles on another white flower to add.

“Yeah. Mine looks ready to fall apart, but…it should still be okay.”

Ready to fall apart… It’s _fitting_ , she thinks. How ready she was to simply fall apart some time ago. Naminé was so quickly used to ruin so many lives, give _terrible_ power to _terrible_ people. And then only later to be tossed to the side when her use was no longer of any benefit. To be a tool, to be a burden, to be _forgotten_ —

“That’s okay,” Ven interjects, reeling Naminé from the sea of her thoughts as she turns her head toward him. “If it falls apart, we’ll put it back together!”

He speaks so genuinely that his sentiment grabs her by the heart; she believes he would mend that crown at the _slightest_ sign of dissembling. In fact, it would never make it to ruin under his watchful eyes. His smile earns the envy of the sun as it gleams and sparkles against the ocean. Naminé tends to leave her drawings of others faceless, but for a smile like that? Its worth every bit of practice to perfect the art.

“Promise?” she asks, sheepishly smiling down at her flower crown, adding the final yellow flower to tie it all together.

“ _Promise_.” Ven nods, turning his attention back to his half finished crown. “But we won’t need to.”

“…Really?”

“Yeah, look,” he leans over carefully, pointing to spots on the work in her hands before placing his piece beside it for comparison. Naminé’s flowers are woven gently, loose but enough to hold together neatly. There’s little damage — and extra care. Ven’s crown of blooms is tight; the stems may be bonded better, but the bruising can be seen in darker greens and pressed petals.

Naminé hums, caught somewhere between uncertainty and confusion.

“You took better care of yours,” he clarifies, taking hers and placing it atop her head where it naturally falls into place. Not too big, not too small — a perfect fit. The ivory petals in the mix highlight her, not only in appearance, but in her nature — her _light_. But the small pink flowers? They do little to match how the sun has reddened her skin. Is that the sun’s fault? Or is she blushing? Ah — the _yellows_ …there is something else about them... But what? “S-So they…umm…”

“What’s wrong, Ven?”

“Uhh…” What was he trying to say? It’s like it all vanished out of his mind. Ven smiles sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck. “Wow, this is…gonna sound silly… Don’t laugh, alright? But…I kinda forgot what I was saying! I put that on your head and then all I could think about was how pretty you look, Naminé.”

“O-Oh…” How is he able to say such things and keep smiling like it’s nothing? Naminé can’t help but to smile back; it’s near impossible not to with him. “Th-Thank you, Ven.”

“Don’t mention it! And…maybe later I’ll remember what I was talking about.” But with only one crown finished, Ven gets back to work on his own, taking the last few yellow flowers in the pile beside them. “I like these flowers that you picked…especially these yellow ones. What are they called? Do you know?”

“They’re daffodils,” she answers, starting to help Ven in tying off the ends of his crown. “I picked those for a reason.”

“They kinda match my hair… Hey, wait! That’s not why you chose them, right?”

Naminé giggles, shaking her head. “No, no! But you can think of that as a bonus, if you’d like.”

With the crown now finished, Naminé holds it in her hands and motions to Ven, who’s now dipping his head down so that it can be placed on his head. It’s cute how the crown surrounds that big, golden blond tuft of hair, drawing more attention to it than it already brings.

“How do I look?” He grins proudly, hands behind his head as he typically does. Ven is truly the sun’s personification — unfailing light. But Naminé doesn’t say that, offering a smile she wishes could come close to that light of his.

“Adorable.” She opts out of the stronger ‘beautiful’ she wants to say. “The daffodils really look good on you.”

"H-Hey!" It's not much of a protest, not with a blush and a smile like that. “Oh — you never told me. Why did you pick them? You said you had a reason.”

Namine cants her head to the side and smiles. “I read flowers have meaning. So when I asked if you wanted to learn to make flower crowns, I wanted to find something that would represent you. The daffodil seemed perfect.”

Ven is quiet, watching how the wind gently pushes against Naminé’s hair.

“It’s a symbol of rebirth.”

“…Rebirth,” Ven repeats under his breath, blue eyes gazing down at the sand. From her shadow, he sees that Naminé has nodded to confirm what he sounds so unsure of. Coming out of a twelve year sleep does constitute for being reborn. Relearning your world, the people you know, the way your own body moves… But she can relate to that. “So…it’s perfect for you, too.”

Naminé gasps quietly, taken aback by the comparison.

“You’re back from a long sleep too, right?”

“Y-Yeah, but…not like yours…”

“Don’t say that! It’s a rebirth for you, too. No matter how long it was.” Twelve years, two years, a week — to be reborn is a _wonderful_ thing, isn’t it? It holds no discrimination, gives back to those who have lost and blossoms into new beginnings with the hope they'll be even greater than the last life. “Give me your hand?”

Her expression softens — confusion, trust, peace. It’s all there. Her hand hesitates a moment before reaching out and Ven, equally as gentle, takes it as requested. All he does is hold her hand and smile; it’s all he needs to do. Warmth spreads through the veins in her fingertips, up her arm until her entire body feels _warmer_ than the hot sun over the Destiny Islands could have ever made her feel.

“…Thank you, Ven.”

“No… Thank you, Naminé.”

**Author's Note:**

> ven never did remember what point he was trying to make and neither did i.


End file.
